


instill hope again

by Labyrinthinee



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Doctor Clarke, F/M, Guard Bellamy, museum and lots of myths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-26
Updated: 2016-05-26
Packaged: 2018-07-10 09:55:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6978607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Labyrinthinee/pseuds/Labyrinthinee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bellamy likes working at the museum. It pays alright and the hours are good. Sometimes there are also curious kids who can’t read, yet staring at the exhibits in front of them while their parents are glued to their phones. Bellamy likes those curious kids who listen to his stories and explanations until their parents drag them away.</p><p>Bellamy also likes beautiful blonde women who listen to him. One in particular.</p>
            </blockquote>





	instill hope again

**Author's Note:**

> this is unbeta'd and something I've just written up last night...  
> any mistakes are mine :)
> 
> title is inspired by a quote I like quite a lot:  
> "Because that's what we storytellers do. We restore order with imagination. We instill hope again and again and again."
> 
> you can find me on tumblr [x](http://serendipitee.tumblr.com/).
> 
> kudos and comments are as always very much appreciated ;)  
> xx

**instill hope again**

  
  


The first time Clarke visits the local museum in Arcadia she’s been in town for almost six months. She had just found out that her boyfriend made her the other woman and she’s passed by the museum’s front steps to know the current exhibition is about Van Gogh who always made her feel oddly at peace whenever she looked at his paintings.

 

Which is how she ends up inside, wandering the exhibit, sitting down in front of her favorite paintings and looking at them until her anger evaporates.

 

She almost spends an hour looking at Starry Night, stretching the painting in her imagination until it takes over the entire room.

 

***

 

The museum is her safe haven after that.

 

When Charlotte dies under her care Clarke stays there until they’re throwing her out.

 

She has been staring at the statue of a Roman. It misses its right hand and its left arm, also its nose and the genitals but Clarke doesn’t mind. Because it still seems like he’s continuing to fight and that’s what Charlotte had done until she couldn’t anymore.

 

“We’re closing.”

 

The voice startles her out of her thoughts and Clarke jumps. She’s looking at a security guard with a mop of dark hair, that falls into his eyes and freckles fanning his tanned skin.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she apologizes and hastily collects her belongings.

 

He watches her, she can tell and Clarke feels herself blush because her hands are shaking, the calmness from before quickly leaving her body. Of course, she spills the contents of her handbag in front of his feet.

 

Tampons, her favorite lipstick, her car keys and a folded piece of paper fall from her purse, clattering and rolling over the marbled floor.

 

She stammers out another apology, suddenly close to tears when her eyes land on the paper. It’s her most loved drawing Charlotte had done for her and Clarke can already feel her chest constrict.

 

Tanned fingers pick it up, unfolding it. She doesn’t dare look up, afraid that she’ll burst into tears and instead continues to collect her belongings. Quickly she shoves them back into the bag before breathing in calmly two or three times. She straightens and catches the guard looking at her with a sad look in his eyes.

 

“Thank you,” she says extending her hand towards the drawing.

 

He just nods, handing it over. Clarke hastily folds it up again, getting it out of sight in the depths of her purse.

 

“That’s Orion,” The security guard says then, pointing to the statue Clarke has been staring at. “You seem interested…”

 

Clarke just shrugs, not really sure what to say. “I have to go,” she answers instead and the guard nods.

 

“Of course.”

 

Clarke googles Orion later that night. Reading about his love for a girl who didn’t think him to be worthy. She falls asleep after he met Artemis.

 

***

 

After a particular bad fight between her and her mother Clarke ends up at the musuem. It’s shortly before closing and she gets the stink eye when she buys a ticket but she doesn’t really care.

 

She barely registers what the exhibit is about, instead she ends up in the same room where the Orion statue had stood last time. Now there’s a glass cubicle in the middle, surrounded by benches.

 

Inside the display is an Egyptian mask. It’s beautiful, sparkling in gold and looking so young. Clarke sits down in front of it.

 

She doesn’t register the first gong and also not the second which indicate the museum is closing soon.

 

She barely even registers that someone is sitting down next to her until the person starts to talk. It’s the security guy from last time and Clarke starts to listen.

 

He tells her stories about Isis, Anubis and Horus and many more and Clarke is enraptured by his voice, the way his words weave the tales.

 

The night guard interrupts them and suddenly Clarke realizes that they must’ve been sitting there for hours. The security guard seems to be just as surprised as her if the way he jumps at the interruption is any indication. They are so closer than when they started and she doesn't really remember scooting closer to him. She won't complain though. Clarke can see the small sprinkles in his iris and she lets out a breath at the realization that he’s beautiful.

 

“I’m sorry, Murphy,” her storyteller apologizes, before standing up and scratching the back of his head in discomfort.

 

“If you had at least fucked her…” the other guy mumbles and Clarke feels the impulse to slap him. She decides to ignore the comment.

 

“Shut up,” the security guard grumbles, obviously blushing and Clarke can’t help but to find it cute. She smiles at him as Murphy leaves the room, mumbling about something neither of them can make out.

 

“I’m sorry,” he apologizes, this time to Clarke but she shrugs.

 

“Thank you really.” She looks him in the eyes, trying to let him know how much it means to her that he took her mind off of things for a while. “I needed that.”

 

He scratches the back of his neck again. “I figured…” There’s a dimple at his chin and the way his shirt stretches over his bicep catches Clarke’s eyes.

 

“I should go,” she says instead of something dumb, like how much she would actually like to stay and listen to him talk for another few hours, preferably snuggled to his shoulder. She wonders if he smells good. He probably does.

 

“Yeah…,” he agrees, not making any indication towards the exit, though.

 

“I’m Clarke,” she says because she doesn’t want to go home, at least not yet.

 

He grins as if he knows she's stalling. “Bellamy,” he introduces himself.

 

“Nice to meet you, Bellamy.” Clarke likes the way her mouth forms his name. It’s different and wonderful.

 

“Nice to meet you, too,” Bellamy says, “but we should really leave now or Murphy’s going to come back.”

 

Clarke nods and grabs her things. Bellamy puts his hand on the small of her back as he guides her to the main exit. She likes the feeling, enjoys the way her skin is tingling all over. And yes, he smells good. The way the air smells after a heavy rain storm, but maybe Clarke’s just exaggerating it. She’s pretty sure, she is.

 

“Thank you again,” she says when he unlocks the door and steps back to let her through.

 

“You’re welcome,” he replies and smiles again. “‘Til next time?”

 

Clarke can hear the hopefulness in his voice and so she nods quickly before she gets on her tiptoes and kisses his cheek in goodbye.

 

“Til next time,” she whispers and then turns around and hurries down the stairs into the night.

 

***  


Bellamy likes working at the museum. It pays alright and the hours are good. Sometimes there are also curious kids who can’t read, yet, staring at the exhibits in front of them while their parents are glued to their phones. Bellamy likes those curious kids who listen to his stories and explanations until their parents drag them away.

 

They remind him of Octavia and the way she used to listen to him when she was younger, with big eyes and an open mouth clinging to his every word.

 

Bellamy also likes beautiful blonde women who listen to him. One in particular. He sees her the first time during the Van Gogh exhibit. He doesn’t dare talk to her then, too busy looking at her from afar, no matter how creepy he feels afterwards.

 

She comes by more often afterwards, always looking exhausted. Sometimes she has a coffee in her hand from their cafeteria. Once she comes in wearing scrubs, apparently to tired to change out of them after work.

 

Bellamy talks to her the first time when she looks not only tired but sad. He has gotten used to her presence every two or three days but she hasn’t been by for almost two weeks and he’s been a little worried. And then she is back again and she looks like a ghost and Bellamy can’t help but be worried.

 

They don’t really exchange many words but he finds he likes her voice and her blue eyes. There’s also a mole close to her upper lip and the urge to touch her, to offer comfort with a hug is almost overwhelming. She hurries out, though.

 

He tells her stories about the Egyptian gods a few weeks later. She’s not been to the museum for almost two months and Bellamy has been worried he’s spooked her.

 

Again she ignores the gongs, staring at Tutankhamun’s mask and Bellamy watches her, building up courage. When finally the last person has filed out of the room, he goes to her. She doesn’t acknowledge him as he sits down and obviously startles when he starts to talk but she doesn’t leave. So he continues.

 

They get interrupted by Murphy who is an ass like always but he finds out her name is Clarke and she kisses his cheek as goodbye which makes Bellamy grin like an idiot for the rest of the night spent with his sister.

 

Clarke’s back the next day. Close to closing again and sitting in the same spot and Bellamy feels drawn to her. She doesn’t look exhausted or sad or angry or tired for the first time instead it seems like she put in an effort to look nice, not that Bellamy would’ve cared otherwise.

 

Much to his irritation and confusion she leaves the room before the museum actually closes. He wants to follow her but a scared mum keeps him occupied making him look for her lost boy. When he gets back to them room, Clarke's gone.

 

Frustrated he kicks the bench they sat on yesterday, running a hand over his face. He almost turns around when he sees a small piece of paper that must've fallen down.

 

 _Meet me outside_ is written on it in cursive letters and Bellamy can’t stop his heart from skipping a beat.

 

He tells her about Cassiopeia and Andromeda that night when they stretch out on the roof of her apartment building.

 

Clarke’s lips find his when he’s finished.

 

***

 

When she wakes up on the roof the next morning, Clarke can’t help the hope that’s spreading through her body. Hope that some of the worst days of her life have brought her here, to him.

 

She listens to a lot of Bellamy’s stories. Encouraging him to become a guide instead of a guard.

  
When they move in together Clarke paints constellations on the ceiling of their bedroom. She adds them over the years whenever Bellamy tells her another one.


End file.
